Common Military-to-Civilian Translations

Make no mistake about it; you are a talented individual. Your post-uniform mission, should you boldly decide to accept it, is to convince a potential employer of that very same fact. In your quest for a new job sans rank upon your shoulder, you will most certainly find yourself trying to communicate your ever so marketable awesomeness via the time-honored resume.

Love it or hate it, it’s still the expected job search instrument of choice used to showcase past work experiences, marketable skills, obvious superpower abilities and applicable shiny credentials.

Finding the write words (yes, pun intended) isn’t always easy, however. It becomes particularly challenging when the reader of said resume is unfamiliar with the military way of life. Fret no more. You can interpret those camouflaged acronyms, ranks, and course titles in a way that civilian employers will understand exactly what you have to offer.

The following common military-to-civilian-translations and tips can help you get your point across to just about anybody.

You know it as:

Civilian employers will understand it as:

NCOIC, Watch Captain,Petty Officer of the Watch

→

Supervisor, Manager, Coordinator

Commander, Chief

→

Division Head, Director, Senior Manager

Executive Officer (XO)

→

Deputy Director, Assistant Manager

Action Officer (AO)

→

Analyst (or Senior Analyst if applicable)

TDY/TAD

→

Business travel

PCS

→

Relocation

OER/NCOER

→

performance appraisal

MOS/MOC

→

career field

Commanded

→

supervised, directed

Battalion, Unit, Platoon

→

organization, agency, department

Mission

→

responsibility, task, objective, job

Combat/War

→

hazardous conditions, conflict

Headquarters

→

headquarters, corporate office

Subordinates

→

employees, co-workers

Service members

→

employees, co-workers, colleagues,personnel, individuals

Security Clearance

→

security clearance

Military Personnel Office (MILPO)Personnel Action Center (PAC)

→

personnel office

Regulations

→

guidance, policy, instructions

Reconnaissance

→

data collection, survey, analysis

TDA/MTOE

→

organizational structure,material resources, manpower

Additional military translation Tips You Can Use:

Awards:

You might have a laundry list of ARCOMs, MSMs, and AAMs and that is a good thing. Clearly, you did your job well. Don’t, however, fill your resume with each and every one of them. Simply mention, where appropriate, that you received awards for outstanding job performance. If there is something critical to mention about a certain award that propels your case for the job further, then it is fine to elaborate on that particular award.

Job Titles:

Don’t get caught up in making sure your positional military title (Captain, Major, Sergeant) translates. Focus more on communicating the functional area of your job title (Communications Technician, Emergency Medical Technician, Nurse). That said, here are some common translations that may be helpful: